For Christmas 2014, La La Land re-edits both soundtracks composed by Elfman for the superhero movies (Batman / Batman Returns) that were released in 2010 in a 4-CD SET box. In case of Batman, a new re-mastering has been realized, whereas the booklet contains the same notes as the 2010 editions of both albums. They have to be very sure of how well works the Batman/Elfman combination, because the release of the reissue of a reissue only 4 years after is a business that few fans of film music might have dreamed. A second opportunity to acquire both albums in one purchase.

REVIEW

Batman (ENGLISH)

Batman (Danny Elfman). It is a pleasure to begin the booklet review reading on the existing doubts of how Elfman was going to adapt his style to a blockbuster of Batman's size, and of how, finally, the Batman's theme that he composed catapulted him definitively to turn into a Hollywood top composer.And it is that this type of recognition, though probably it only can be done years later, is necessary to mention it in this type of editions, noticing the importance and the merit that had the composition of this score for the film world in general and, especially, for the character of Batman and Elfman's career. Undoubtedly, Elfman's merit came after creating a theme for a superhero, tied exclusively to this character (as years before John Williams was doing with Superman), a showy, enterteining, easily memorable and easily identifiable theme with Batman, a theme that represents the darkness and the hero's action facet.

As for the expanded edition of 2010, this one comes on two discs, the first one with the score as is is listened in the film, and a second with a remastered edition of 1989 original soundtrack, besides some bonus tracks. It is recursive in some releases of La La Land to include the original score besides the expanded score, thing that seems to be unnecessary and redundant, even though the tracks of one and other one are not exactly the same ones.In spite of it, the tracks of the original score (disc 2) come commented in the booklet, and from this information we extract the confirmation of what always we have suspected: that the music contained in the official albums is not exactly the same used for the movie, since there is used to done a selection of tracks that are edited, cut, with different instrumentation and even with parts that, directly, do not appear in the film.How many times we have acquired a soundtrack album of a complete or expanded score in that there was a track (even sometimes the Main Title) that was taking adhered the suffix film version? If in this expanded edition of the score we are listening to the real version of the score used for the film, what track is this that we have been listening and admiring for years? So the above mentioned thing, simply a most attracting version for the demanding hearing of the soundtracks consumer. Though it is an understandable labor, it would have to tend to be abolished, because it looks like a practice that is near the fraud. And a proof that it is unnecessary is the existence of the disc 1 of the La La Land edition of 2010, which includes the film version of the score.

The edition included one year later in the Elfman/Burton anniversary box contributes the original score with the track Attack of the Batwing in extended version, some tracks already listened in the La La Land 2010 edition and a few demo tracks (worktapes).